


I won't fall unless you ask me to

by Moonbeambb



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Multi, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:28:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 18,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22204105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonbeambb/pseuds/Moonbeambb
Summary: The breakup between Ricky Bowen and Nini Salazar-Roberts took Gina Porter completely by surprise.Her newfound fake relationship with Ricky Bowen also took her completely by surprise.
Relationships: E.J. Caswell/Nini Salazar-Roberts, Ricky Bowen & Nini Salazar-Roberts, Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter, Seb Matthew-Smith/Carlos Rodriguez
Comments: 44
Kudos: 222





	1. The death of Ricky Bowen and Nini Salazar-Roberts

The breakup between Ricky Bowen and Nini Salazar Roberts took Gina Porter completely by surprise. Gina knew the couple in high School. She’d seen the aftermath of one of their break ups before, and it was not pretty. She assumed that the same went for this recent one.

See, the three kind of had a history. Gina had moved to Salt Lake City during her sophomore year of high school, and when she heard about the school musical, she made it her mission to get the lead part. Most of it was to impress her mom, leave her mark on the school she was going to have to eventually leave. Of course, she didn’t get the part. Nini did. Ricky joined the musical to get her back, and Gina made Nini’s life a living hell for a few days before Ricky knocked her down a peg. Gina stole Nini’s phone, gave it to her current jealous boyfriend, broke the two up, then took him to homecoming. It was all poor judgement on her part, and she should have seen it sooner, but Ricky Bowen called her out, and she changed for the better. 

Ricky was a really good influence on her. They were both good for each other. Gina had never met anyone who actually tried and wanted to be her friend. No one had really cared enough to try and break down her walls, but Ricky did. The least she could do was do the same for him. The two became close, and Gina wondered if Ricky ever thought about Nini anymore. They were best friends, on the way to becoming more until Gina’s world came crashing down around her. 

Gina got the call from her mom that they’d be moving in a week. Gina tried to push Ricky away, but he wouldn’t let her. She was grateful for that. In the end, he chose Nini. Gina moved away, and she and Ricky lost touch. 

Somehow, the universe hated Gina Porter, because she’d ended up attending the same college as the people she went to high school with. 

When Gina started at UCLA, Ricky and Nini were together, stronger than ever. Kourtney was also attending, majoring in Fashion Design. Big Red didn’t go to School there but he was Ricky’s roommate, and he was building an app. Ricky and Nini were obviously in the performing arts department, and so was Gina. 

Gina decided the universe hated her even more when her best friend, one of the only friends she’d made there, Carlos Rodriguez, moved in with Ricky and Red. 

Carlos was the second person in her life that cared enough to break down her walls. Carlos thought her attitude was hilarious, and decided he always wanted to be on her good side. They’d met in a beginning dance class, and he was thoroughly impressed with Gina’s talent as a dancer. He’d basically forced her to get a coffee with him, and they’d been best friends ever since. 

Carlos was the one who spilled the news about Ricky and Nini. 

“You will never guess who broke up over the summer.” He said, barging into the bedroom of her apartment. Gina shared her apartment with Ashlyn, who was her roommate as a freshman, and a boy named Seb, who Carlos was crushing on hard. Both of them were in the performing arts department at UCLA, also. 

“Who?” She asked. She had been browsing Tumblr on her laptop, waiting for Carlos to come over and tell her some big news. 

“Ricky and Nini.” He said, waiting for her reaction.

“You’re joking.” She said. It shouldn’t have been a surprise for her, seeing as she’d experienced their break up before, but they’d been together for years now. She was half convinced they were going to be married by the time they graduated.

“I swear on Zac Effron’s life. I am telling the truth.” He said, holding one hand over his heart. 

“If they broke up over the summer, how did you just find out now?” Gina questioned. Carlos lived with Ricky. She figured that if he had a breakup, Carlos would be one of the first to know. 

“They kept it a secret!” He said, throwing his arms in the air, “He came home today all serious. He said, ‘I need to tell you guys this, so it won't be weird this year.’, and he dropped the bomb. Red was pissed that he didn’t know, cause that’s his best friend, you know. I basically rushed over here to tell you.”

“Well, do you know why?” She asked, curious.

“Apparently she broke it off with him. She told him she needed to find out who she was without boys, but get this,” Carlos paused for dramatic effect, “She has a new boyfriend.”

“No.” Gina said in disbelief.

“Oh yes, honey. And he’s tall, and handsome, and captain of the water polo team at USC.” He says. 

“Oh my god, poor Ricky.” Gina said. 

“Poor Ricky, indeed. Well, anyways, I hope we can get his mind off of everything for his birthday. The rumor is that Nini’s bring her new boyfriend.” Carlos said.

“She is?” Gina asked in disbelief at Nini’s lack of empathy. The Nini that Gina knew wasn’t mean. In fact, she had a huge heart, so why would she bring her new boyfriend around Ricky so soon?

“Yeah. Ricky says he’s fine, but I know once they show up, he’s gonna freak out.” Carlos sighs, “Are you coming?”

“Yeah, for sure. Let me know if you need help with anything before.” She told him. She and Ricky weren’t friends anymore, but their paths had crossed on more than one occasion. Especially, since Carlos lived in the same house as him. They were civil, but Gina never really knew what to say to him. It was like they’d never knew each other. 

That night, no matter how hard Gina tried, she couldn’t get the Bowen boy out of her head. She’d seen this before, almost under the exact same circumstances, but she wasn’t going to get involved in it this time. She would keep her distance from the two, focus on her dance classes, and make it through this year without having to relive any high school drama. At least, that’s what she hoped for.


	2. The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gina becomes Ricky's Cindy Mancini.

Gina had gone to Ricky’s party with Ashlyn and Seb. Actually, the party was bordering on rager territory when they arrived. Since moving in with the two, they’d mixed and mingled with Gina’s friends. Gina didn’t really call anyone else but Carlos a friend, but she could admit she was part of a group. She just wasn’t as close with anyone as she was with Carlos. 

She had gotten closer to Ashlyn and Seb, though. They all lived similarly and kept to themselves, but anytime one of them needed help with something for a class, they wouldn’t hesitate to help out. They also all had the same taste in movies. There were countless nights where Gina would come home, exhausted from teaching a dance class to kids between the ages of twelve and fourteen at the studio she worked at, to find Ashlyn and Seb on the couch waiting for her to watch an old movie together. She liked to be around them, and they never pried into her personal life, but Gina knew that they would be there if she needed them. It was the perfect living situation for all of them. 

Gina currently stood with Kourtney in the corner of the kitchen, watching the three roommates knock back shots. Red hated shots. Red basically hated anything that wasn’t a girly mixed drink, which was very funny to Gina, but completely fitting. But it was Ricky’s birthday, and Nini was going to show up any minute, so Red was going to do whatever it took to get Ricky through the night. 

“So tell me about Nini’s new boyfriend.” Gina told Kourtney, taking their attention from the reckless boys at the counter. 

“His name is Ej Caswell. He’s a senior on a full scholarship to USC for water polo, and he’s gonna be a doctor.” Kourtney tells her.

“Okay, something has to be wrong with him.” Gina says. Nini was actually really good at picking boyfriends, Gina decided. 

“Oh, he likes country music.” Kourtney says. 

“Right. It had to be something.” Gina shakes her head. Still, she thinks, she could handle it if he was really as great as everyone says he is. 

As if on cue, Nini walks through the door with Ej on her arm. Gina has to admit they look good together. Nini was wearing a fluffy pink cropped sweater and her signature docs, while Ej wore a grey sweater and khakis. He was basically a Holister model. Then again, so was she. Kourtney excused herself to great them, and Gina looked towards the boys, who had no clue Nini just walked in. 

“Guys, um, Nini’s here.” She told them, placing her hand on Carlos’s shoulder to get his attention. She watched Ricky’s head snapped towards the door. 

“Shit.” Ricky said, and Gina swore she saw the light in his eyes vanish. 

“I knew it.” Carlos says, referring to Ricky’s small freak out.

“It’s gonna be okay, dude. This is your night. Don’t let them ruin it.” Big Red told him, slinging an arm around his shoulders. 

“Exactly. And she’s still your friend. She just wants to be here for you.” Carlos said. 

“If she was my friend, I don’t think she’d bring her super hot boyfriend to my birthday party.” He sighs, running a hand through his hair, “What should I do. I need to do something right? Gina?”

“Me?” She asked, surprised. The question brought her right back to high school, where the two of them were on the verge of becoming best friends. Ricky hadn’t valued her opinion in years. 

“Yes, you.” He laughed like they had always been friends, like they hadn’t drifted apart, like he’d chosen her, like this whole situation wasn’t awkward for them.

“I don’t know, Ricky. Just ignore them. It’s your birthday, so don’t let them ruin your fun.” Gina honestly had no idea what she was talking about. She figured she’d go with something generic to say. 

“You know what you really need to do, Ricky?” Carlos asked, “You need to hook up with someone else. You’re single now. Girls are going to be falling at your feet.”

“Maybe,” Ricky said, “But I don’t want to actually hook up with anyone. I don’t think I’m ready for it, but I need Nini to see that I’ve moved on.”

“Okay, well you can’t just lead some poor girl on and ghost her tomorrow.” Gina chimes in. She wonders if that sounds bitter, considering their history, but she doesn’t dwell on it. 

“What you need is a Cindy Mancini.” Big Red suggests, making everyone’s heads snap towards him, “What? I love a good rom-com. I’m a man of many layers.”

“No you’re right. I need a fake girlfriend. I need to make Nini see what she’s missing so she realizes that she wants me back. Ej may have that jawline, but we have a history.” Ricky says, the wheels turning inside his head. 

“Exactly! Now who’s the lucky girl.” Red wonders. The boys scan the room for the perfect girl. They suggest a few girls, all of which Ricky turns down with reasons that make no sense.

“You guys are crazy.” Gina shakes her head, taking a sip of her drink. When they hear her, all three boys turn their heads to her. The three of them give each other a look, before focusing back on Gina. She knows exactly what their thinking, “No.”

“Gina, you’re perfect. Nini knows you, but it’s not like you’re exactly friends. Plus, she knows that you and Ricky have a history.” Carlos says, and Gina tries not to change her expression when he brings up her past. 

“I don’t want to get in the middle of this!” Gina argues.

“You won’t be in the middle of anything. Nini’s cool. She’s not openly jealous or, like, violent. She’s not gonna fight you. She just needs a little push to realize what she’s missing.” Ricky explains, taking an arm around Gina pulling her closer. 

“Ricky…” Gina whines, closing her eyes.

“Please,” Ricky says, dropping to his knees in front of her, and holding her hands in a plea, “You’re my only hope, Gina. Please.”

“I can't believe I’m saying yes to this.” She shakes her head, and Ricky shoots up, pulling her into a hug. 

“Come on! It’ll be fun.” He says, “Like old times.”

Gina thinks about it, really thinks about it. His eyes were just so sad. Gina could never say no to those eyes. 

“You’re the worst.” She tells him, rolling her eyes. “Come one. We need to figure this out.”

She takes his hand and pulls him from the boys. They walk through the crowds of bodies, passing Nini and Ej on the way out. Gina knows she sees them because she makes eye contact with the girl, giving her a tight lipped smile as they walk past. She takes Ricky outside so that they can talk.

“We need to set some ground rules. We can’t just go into this blindly.” Gina says, crossing her arms in front of her. 

“Ground rules. Okay…” He says.

“Like, how far is this gonna go? It can’t just be one night because if Nini sees us tonight and we don’t talk to each other tomorrow, then you’re screwed.” Gina explained.

“Then we’ll just keep going until I get her back. Or until I know she’s moved on for good.” Ricky says, sadly. 

“Okay, sounds good.” Gina nods, “Let’s talk about PDA, then. I’m pretty comfortable with everything, but I probably won’t kiss you. I mean, if it comes down to it, I can, I just think that it’s kind of a special thing.”

“That’s cute,” He smiles, “I’m cool with everything, too. Including kissing.”

“Whatever.” Gina rolls her eyes when he winks at her. 

“Pet names?” He asks.

“Right. I forgot about that. What did Nini call you?” Gina asks. She wants to make sure she can avoid them to avoid any awkwardness.

“Everything, basically. If you call me ‘baby’ it’ll drive her insane, so I think you should definitely do that.” He says, throwing everything Gina was thinking out the window. 

“Got it. I’ve never been in, like, a real relationship before, so I have no experience with pet names. Just call me whatever feels natural, and I’ll let you know if I hate them.” Gina tells him. Gina had been with people before, she just never put a label on anything. And she definitely didn’t let herself get close enough to let someone give her a pet name. 

“Yeah, same with me, I guess.” Ricky nods. 

“Okay. Let’s do this, then.” Gina says, holding her hand out to him. He takes it, intertwining their fingers before they head back inside together. 

“Want another drink?” He asks, as they walk back inside. She nods, and he makes her drink before getting a beer for himself.

“Wanna see something cool?” She smirks. 

“Yes.” Ricky nods. Gina takes his bottle, and situates it so that the edge of the counter is between the cap and the bottle. Then Gina brings her hand down, slamming it on the cap, and opening the bottle. Ricky cheers in excitement, and Gina looks to see if Nini had seen them. She was already watching them. 

Ricky makes a comment about how Gina has changed and she gives him a shy smile. He takes her hand, leading them to the couch. Ricky sits down, pulling Gina down with him so that her legs are sat over the top of one of his. Gina is alarmed at how natural it feels to be so affectionate with Ricky. They sat next to Carlos, who was flirting with Seb on the other side of him. Unfortunately, they sat across from Nini and Ej on the other couch. They were all over each other. She was laughing at almost everything he said. Gina wanted to feel mad for Ricky, but Nini just looked really happy. She did notice, however, how Ricky was staring at them with his sad puppy eyes.

“Hey,” She said, getting his attention by placing a finger under his chin to guide his gaze back to her, “Look at me. Not them. You’re gonna blow our cover.”

“Right.” He said, looking at her. His eyes flicker to her lips for a split second, but she tries to ignore it.

“Let’s talk about something. How are your classes?” She asks, trying to distract him.

“How are my classes?” He laughs, “Gina, come on.”

“What? I’m trying to distract you.” She insists. 

“My classes are…fine. I don’t know.” She cant tell there’s something on his mind, but she doesn’t want to push him to talk about it.

“Got it. Classes are not a popular topic,” She says, “Are you enjoying your birthday so far?”

“It’s fine. Except for the fact that my ex girlfriend is flirting with her new boyfriend ten feet away from me.” He growls, “But at least my girlfriend’s pretty cool.”

“God, you’re so corny.” Gina laughs, shaking her head. They’re quiet for a minute, both waiting for the other to say something.

“This is probably stupid to bring up, but I’m sorry about all that stuff when we were younger. I should have kept in touch with you. I should’ve tried harder.” He said. Maybe it was the alcohol, or the fact that he was currently having the worst birthday of his life, but Ricky needed to talk to her about it. At one point, Gina was the most important person in his life.

“It’s fine. I was used to it.” Gina shrugged. Ricky felt hurt at how easily she brushed it off, how she could dismiss their history like that.

“Oh.” Ricky answers, unsure of what to say to that. Gina notices, and thinks that maybe she said the wrong thing. She just didn’t want to make Ricky feel worse about it than he already did. 

“But I think that this might be our second chance. I mean, the universe clearly doesn’t want to keep us apart.” Gina says, as she watches Ricky’s eyes light up again. 

“I completely agree.” He nods with a smile. They were in a situation that would force them together, that would force them to get to know each other again. They were new people now, and though Gina put her walls right back up after she lost touch with Ricky, he was determined to break them down again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I'm gonna take some time to clarify some stuff. The only characters who attended east high are Gina, Ricky, Nini, Kourtney, and Big Red. Carlos, Seb, Ashlyn, and Ej are all characters they met in college. Basically this has the same break up that the series had, but I've tweaked it a bit, and now Ricky and Gina are fake dating! Also, Ricky and Gina's friendship in high school lasted longer than it seemed in the series. I think that's it. Hope you enjoy!


	3. Best Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and Gina talk it out.

Gina woke up the next morning to someone shaking her. She opened her eyes to see Ricky hovering over her, and she quickly realized that she didn’t fall asleep in Carlos’s room like she usually did. In fact, Gina couldn’t remember much from the night before, besides the fact that she said yes to one of the dumbest ideas she’d ever heard. 

“Good morning, Gina.” Ricky smiled down at her. She frowned at him, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and sitting up. She could only imagine how busted she looked after the night she had. 

“What time is it?” She asked.

“Like, ten. The guys are still asleep, but I’m so bored. And I’m hungry, so I was thinking we could go get breakfast.” Ricky told her. It was weird for Gina, how easy it was for Ricky to retreat back to their past. He acted like nothing had ever changed, like the two of them stayed best friends after she moved. Gina wasn’t so good at that. 

“Look at me.” She told him, knowing she probably had mascara running down her face, and she knew how her hair looked in the morning. 

“You look fine. Let’s go.” Ricky pleaded. He pauses and brings his thumb up to her face, trying to wipe the back from underneath her eyes. He doesn’t know what he’s doing, and it’s kind of hurting her, so she swats his hands away.

All Gina had to wear was her cropped tank top and jeans. She had no idea where her leather jacket had gone. Ricky, who somehow always knew exactly what she was thinking, threw one of his hoodies at her. She rolled her eyes, getting out of bed, and making her way to Carlos’s bathroom to change. She wiped the makeup from around her eyes, and tried to fix her hair. For a moment, she felt self conscious about her fresh face, but Ricky had seen her without makeup before. Ricky had actually seen her cry all of it off before. It was just Ricky, the same Ricky from junior year. She could handle this.

Ricky was waiting for her in the living room, with her leather jacket in his hands. She thanked him, taking it and throwing it on. He lead her outside the house to the orange beetle he somehow managed to still have.

“This thing still works?” She asked as she slid into the passenger seat. She’s suddenly aware of the time she spent in this car in high school, all the times Ricky dragged her to the skate park, or drove her home, and the time she kissed his cheek after homecoming. 

“She will never die,” He nods, proudly, “It took Nini, Red, Kourtney, and I all the way from Salt Lake to here.”

“Oh yeah?” She smiles. She feels a pang in her chest at the story. If she’d stayed, she could have gone with them. Granted, she is a year younger, so she couldn’t have stayed, but she would have at least said goodbye. She would have at least been following them there the year she graduated. “Seemed fun.”

She didn’t know if Ricky could tell that Gina was uncomfortable, or if he just didn’t want to talk about Nini again, but he dropped the subject. They drove in silence, but it wasn’t awkward. Silence was never awkward for the two of them. Sometimes it was enough to just be together. 

Ricky had taken her to a diner near campus, one he said was his favorite. They sat down in a corner booth, and when the waitress came by, Ricky immediately started ordering. 

“Can I have the Denver omelette with a side of bacon, and she’ll have a strawberry waffle, extra whipped cream.” He orders, “And two waters please.”

“How did you remember that?” Gina asked, eyes wide. Under normal circumstances, if a boy had ordered for her, Gina would have gotten up and left, but she and Ricky were anything but normal, and he knew exactly what she was going to order. 

“What?”

“The strawberry waffle, how-” She asked, but he cut her off.

“How did I remember the only thing you ever ordered when we went out to eat, even when it wasn’t breakfast?” He asks. Right, Gina thought, it didn’t mean anything. She was just predictable.

“Well-” She begins to speak again, but Ricky interrupts.

“Look, I don’t know how it went for you, after you left. And maybe after we lost touch you didn’t care, or you didn’t want to think about it, but you were my best friend. I didn’t just forget you.” He tells her, seriously.

“I cared Ricky. Don’t do that. I didn’t have the easiest time opening up to people, but I did it with you, so don’t act like I could just throw it all away.” Gina defends herself, a little angry that he would accuse her of not caring, “You were my best friend too.”

“I know that. I just-I thought about you, like, all the time. I wanted to text you about songs that reminded me of you, or something funny that happened, but we stopped talking, and I didn’t know where I stood.” Ricky explained, “And then, somehow, Carlos managed to befriend you, and when he brought you over, you barely said a word to me!”

“You didn’t say anything either! It was weird, okay. It was weird to see someone I used to tell everything to, and suddenly have no idea what to say.” Gina says, “I always knew what to say.”

“I’m sorry. I should have done more. We should have been different.” He says. Gina doesn’t really know what to say. He’s right. He meant everything to her, the musical meant everything. They should have been different, but they weren't. 

“It’s okay. It happened, and it’s in the past now, and I don’t want to stay there. Do you?” She asks.

“No, of course not.” Something changed for Ricky when Gina left. Things went back to normal, and he was happy, but he always wondered what might have happened if she stayed. 

“Good. Cause now you’re sitting across from me, ordering me my favorite breakfast like we’re seventeen again, and it feels better than arguing about us not trying hard enough.” She smiles, wanting to put it all away for good. 

“I’d like to try again, Gina.” He says. 

“Me too, Ricky.”

“Plus, you’re still my fake girlfriend.” He smirks. 

“We’re still going through with that? It didn’t even work last night. She was still all over Ej.” Gina says. With a sober mind, she knew this was a bad idea.

“No! No. It did work, because when I went to get us another drink, Nini followed me and started interrogating me about it.” He argues.

“Well, what did you say?”

“I can’t really remember. I think I told her off, because she texted me this morning apologizing for bringing Ej around so soon.” He said.

“You told her off?” Gina laughs. 

“I guess!” He shrugs, laughing with her. Moments later, the food arrives at the table, and they dig in. They both sneak bites from each other’s plates, something so familiar to both of them. It was like nothing had ever changed. They’d never drifted apart, never lost touch, never avoided each other. They were on the way to being best friends again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is kind of short. Thanks for reading!


	4. Something More

Ricky dropped Gina off at her apartment after they ate, and when Gina got home, she opened the door to Seb and Ashlyn waiting for her at the kitchen counter. They were both nursing mugs of coffee, and when Gina walked through the door, they both gave her a look.

“Hey, guys.” Gina gave them a small smile, closing the door. 

“Hey!” They both said at the exact same time. Gina knew she was in for an interrogation after the events of last night.

“What?” Gina asked, wanting the two to get on with it.

“Who drove you home just now?” Ashlyn asked, trying to seem nonchalant.

“Carlos.” Gina lied.

“I know when you’re lying, Gina.” Ashlyn said. Gina groaned.

“Fine, Ricky dropped me off.” She said, moving to the kitchen to make her own cup of coffee.

“When did that even happen?” Seb asked.

“I don’t know, it just did.” Gina shrugs. She makes a mental note to talk to Ricky about their backstory. 

“You guys were cute together. Don’t get me wrong, but didn’t he just break up with Nini?” Ashlyn asks.

“They broke up before summer started.” Gina says.

“Right, but is he really over her?” Ashlyn asks.

“Ash.” Seb warns. She was getting kind of pushy, but Gina knew she had her best interest at heart.

“I mean, yeah. I’m pretty sure he is. He doesn’t really talk about her, and she’s with that new guy now.” Gina lies. 

“Yeah, Ej? He’s my cousin.” Ashlyn tells her. This comes as a surprise to Gina.

“He is?” she asks.

“Yeah.” Ashlyn laughs. Gina tries to imagine it. She didn’t know Ej, but from the looks of it, Ashlyn was far more interesting than he seemed. “Look, I’m just looking out for you. I’ve never seen you in a relationship before, so you must really like Ricky. I just don’t want you getting hurt.”

“I know, Ash. But I can handle it. He hasn’t given me any reason to believe he’s not over her.” Gina says. It was just a fake relationship. Gina had virtually no way of getting hurt.

“I trust you, and I’m here if you need me.” She said.

“Me too!” Seb chimes in. Gina smiles, and moves to hug the two of them from behind.

“Thanks for being here.” She said.

Gina then retreated to her room, suddenly feeling the hangover she had from last night, and quickly fell asleep. 

Gina wakes up later that night when Carlos barges into her room. Gina sits up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She throws a pillow at the boy in annoyance, knowing she probably would have slept through the night if she hadn’t been woken up.

“Ugh, Carlos, go bother Seb for an hour or something.” She whines, laying back down. He gasps. 

“Do not throw things at me! I brought you food.” He says, shaking the bag of chinese takeout in his hand. Gina shoots up.

“You should have opened with that.” Gina tells him. 

“You didn’t give me a chance to open up with anything!” He argues, sitting down on her floor and setting the food out on the ground. Gina moves down to join him. “We need to talk about last night.”

“What is there to talk about? You were there.” Gina says, digging into the beef and broccoli. 

“I mean, you two looked very comfortable together…” Carlos said, raising an eyebrow.

“We’re actors, Carlos.” Gina says.

“Okay, then what about the fact that he broke your heart in high school when he chose Nini?” Carlos asked. Gina narrows her eyebrows.

“So what? That was years ago.” She says.

“So, does any part of you feel, I don’t know, excited that he chose you this time?” Carlos suggests.

“He didn’t choose me.” Gina tells him, “And I don’t care, anyways. I’m not the same girl I was in high school. He’s just Ricky, now.”

She didn’t want to get her hopes up. She didn’t want to go through what she did in high school, again. Chances were that Ricky was going to get Nini back, and then completely ignore Gina for the rest of their college careers. If she kept emotional distance from Ricky, then she wouldn’t get hurt again.

“Gi, you don’t have to guard yourself around me. I’m not going to judge you for having feelings for him.” He tells her, sincerely. Gina knew this. Carlos was never judgemental, and he was surprisingly sympathetic, especially when it came to Gina’s issues with opening up. After all, he was the first person she met at school who tried hard enough to break her walls down.

“Well, I don’t. I don’t have feelings for Ricky Bowen.” She snaps.

“Gina…” Carlos starts.

“Even if I did, which I don’t, this isn't a real thing. Ricky didn’t ask me because he likes me. He asked me because he knows it’ll piss Nini off, because it’ll open up old wounds.” She says. Maybe Gina did feel something for Ricky. Maybe she was on the verge of it, but there was no way she was going to let it go further than a high school level infatuation. 

“Believe what you want, but he wants to get close to you again. He regrets losing touch. He told me himself.” Carlos tells her through a mouthful of food.

“Yeah, he told me too.” She smiles, “Look, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be close to him again. He was my best friend, once, but I no longer have feelings for Richard Bowen.”

“That’s all I wanted to hear. Honesty.” Carlos tells her. The two of them finish their food, talking about Carlos’ complicated crush on Seb, and Seb’s complicated response to that crush. When Carlos left, and Gina got ready for bed, she couldn’t keep her mind of Ricky, and the thought of something more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry no Ricky this chapter, but it's important for me to establish Gina and Carlos' friendship. Thanks for reading!


	5. When the sea rises to meet us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang goes to the beach.

It had been a week since Ricky’s birthday, and he and Gina were texting practically every day. They discussed the plan, figuring out when they’d be around Nini and Ej, what their story was, why it had taken them this long to get together. Ricky came up with the story that when he’d seen Gina again, it was like he was seeing her for the first time, and Gina would be lying to herself if she said her heart didn’t skip a beat when he sent that text.

Gina goes throughout her days, moving from class to class, texting Ricky in between, and practicing at the dance studio she teaches at. But Ricky is always there, lingering in the back of her mind, and Gina wished he would stop. Gina realizes she’s crushing on him. She can admit that much to herself, but she cannot let her feelings get away from her. 

When she leaves her last class of the week, an improv class which she hates, she spots Nini walking in her direction. Gina smiles at her, hoping she can get out of the interaction with easy small talk, and make her way to the studio to let off some steam.

“Gina!” Nini calls to her with that sweet smile she does, the kind where she scrunches her nose. Gina gives her a smile and a wave.

“Hey, Nini.” She says.

“What are you up to?” Nini asks.

“Oh, just got out of my last class for the week.” Gina tells her. It doesn’t feel awkward. Nini is surprisingly calm despite the fact that she’s talking to her ex’s current girlfriend.

“Are you coming to the beach this weekend? Did Ricky tell you?” Nini asks. Gina hadn’t heard about the beach trip, but she wasn’t going to let Nini think that Ricky was keeping something like that from her. But she didn’t want to say if she was going or not, just in case Ricky had a reason for not going.

“Yeah, he did actually! I’m not sure if I’m going or not. I’ve been kind of swamped with school and work, but we’ll see.” Gina says.

“I hope you can make it. It would be nice for everyone to hang out again. I feel like we never see you.” Nini observes. 

“Yeah, Just busy I guess.” Gina shrugs. Gina hadn’t really felt part of anything since high school. Sure the theater was a community, but in college, it felt more like a competition. She wasn’t used to group settings, especially not friendly ones.

“Okay, well I’m meeting Ej right now, but I hope I’ll see you this weekend.” Nini tells her, saying goodbye and leaving. When Nini is far enough away, Gina dials Ricky’s number. 

“Hello?” Ricky says over the phone.

“Were you gonna tell me we were going to the beach this weekend?” Gina asks.

“I mean, I didn’t think it was really your thing. Do you want to go?” He asks.

“I don’t know. It’s not really my thing, but don’t you think it’ll be good to be seen together as a couple?” She asks.

“Yeah, of course. I wanted you to come. I was just sort of afraid of asking.” Ricky admits.

“Afraid? Why?” She asks.

“Well, I don’t know. I feel like I dragged you into this against your will or something. I don’t want to force you to do this. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.” He tells her. 

“Ricky, if I didn’t want to do this, I wouldn’t be doing it. I want to help you.” She says. She was actually kind of invested now. Sure, she may be harbouring a crush on him, but she wanted it to end well for him. She wanted him to get the girl.

“Are you sure?” He asks, hopefully. Gina laughs.

“Of course.” She insists.

“Okay, then I’ll pick you up on saturday at ten a.m.?” He asks.

“Sure, Ricky. I’ll see you then.” She says. Gina can’t hide her smile for the rest of the day.

Ricky picks her up on saturday at 10 A.M. on the dot, like he said he would. Carlos had already picked up Ashlyn and Seb, and teased Gina when she told him she was driving with Ricky. When Gina opened the door, she saw that Ricky was wearing a hawaiian shirt that was very similar to the one Gina was wearing.

“You gotta change.” She told him.

“You go change! I don’t have another shirt with me.” He argues. 

“But I look so cute.” She whined. Ricky couldn’t argue with that.

“We cannot be that couple.” He told her. Gina rolled her eyes, turning to her room to go change. She came out moments later wearing an oversized dickie’s t-shirt. It looks nice tucked into her shorts. Ricky always thought that Gina dressed sort of effortlessly. She didn’t really care about fashion in any sense of the word, but she always looked good. Ricky always thought she looked good. 

They left her apartment building, and got into the orange beetle. They were relatively close to the beach, but you could never be too sure with LA traffic. Ricky passed Gina the aux cord, which meant a lot if you were in Ricky’s car. Gina didn’t know it, but for Ricky to allow for someone to play music in his car, he had to really trust them. 

Because Gina cant resist a good joke, and because she remembered that Ricky’s favorite song from high school musical was You Are the Music In Me, she played it. She played it loud, and the two of them were screaming in his car like they were sixteen and Ricky just got his license. She played a couple more songs (deliberately skipping over when there was me and you) before she changed the playlist. She played an Alabama Shakes album because she always liked to drive with them playing, plus high school musical was getting old anyways. 

The car ride was interesting for Gina, somehow eye opening. She and Ricky talked about everything and anything. She talked about how much she hated improv and Ricky told her that he was writing more now than he ever had before. He said that the heartbreak had been good for him. Gina was so comfortable. Gina always thought about the kind of relationship she had with Ricky, a relationship she searched for after they stopped talking. And Carlos was her best friend, and what she has with him is perfect, but she and Ricky were so different. 

Carlos texted Gina that they were meeting at a restaurant near the water. Everyone had gotten there before she and Ricky had. When they arrived, Ricky opened the door for Gina like a gentleman, and Gina laughed at him. He rolled his eyes at her for making fun of his kind gesture, then hung his arm around her shoulders, leading her to the restaurant. The groups was sitting at a booth near a window overlooking the beach. The table erupted in greetings when they arrived. 

“Hey, man. We haven’t properly met. I’m Ricky.” Ricky reaches his hand out to shake Ej’s. It catches the boy by surprise but he quickly recovers. 

“Nice to meet you, man. I’m Ej.” He smiles at both Ricky and Gina. Shaking both of their hands. Carlos scoots over, making room for Gina and Ricky, while getting closer to Seb at the same time. 

After Ricky and Ej got their awkward meeting out of the way, and after the awkwardness had died down, the group launched into endless conversations, talking over each other, branching off into different conversations. Gina found herself slowly enjoying being around everyone. Anytime Carlos forced her into a group situation, she’d find a way to drift away from the crowd, or she’d only talk to Carlos, Seb, or Ashlyn. She was never really comfortable in group settings, but she was realizing that maybe it wasn’t so bad. 

Eventually, everyone had finished eating, and Nini decided that it was time for them to actually go on the beach. They’d gone to their cars to get their stuff. Ej had brought a volleyball net, and told everyone he’d force them to play. Gina brought a book with her, sure she was going to ignore everyone and keep to herself, but after lunch, she suddenly didn’t want to be alone. 

Ricky helped Ej set up the net, and Gina observed that the two boys actually got along pretty well, even if Ricky had some snide remark to say about him under his breath to Gina. 

They split up into teams. Gina was on a team with Ricky, Carlos, and Big Red. Nini, Ej, Kourtney, and Seb, while Ashlyn was keeping score. She would play the next round. 

“Alright, babe, you’re serving! Don’t let us down!” Ricky calls to Gina. They’d been playing for about twenty minutes, and they were tied. 

“No pressure.” She remarks, sarcastically, and he winks at her. Gina shakes her head, holding the ball out in front of her. She brings her arm back and swings it forward, knocking the ball out from under her hand, and hitting it over the net. Ej rushes forward for it, hitting it back over. It goes back and forth for a while, and Gina had no idea any of them were this good at volleyball. Gina watched as the ball came back over the net, and it was coming straight for her. She rushed forward, hitting the ball with both of her wrists. It didn’t go over, but Red hits it back to her. She doesn’t know how she does it, but she jumps up, spiking the ball over the net, and gaining her team the point. 

They all erupt in cheers, even the other team. She finds that she’s excited too. She can’t believe she won the point for them. She turns around, screaming about her win, when Ricky rushes for her, picking her up and spinning her around in a hug. He doesn’t let go however, he picks her up again, and Gina has no choice but to wrap her legs around his torso. Ricky runs in the direction of the water, everyone else running after them.

“Ricky!” Gina yells, “Ricky, no!” 

“Ricky, yes!” He yells. He reaches the water, and goes farther and farther out. Gina has her head buried in his neck. She knows he’s going to drop her.

“Richard Bowen, if you let go of me, I’m going to murder you!” Gina screams. He’s stopped now, the waves reaching up to his knees. Gina looks down at the waves. 

“Oh yeah? What if I-” He lets go for a split second, and Gina feels her life flash before her eyes, before he catches her again.

“Don’t!” She yelps, and Ricky laughs. Everyone else has caught up now, but they’ve gone farther out. They got a chance to change into their swimsuits.

“Okay!” Ricky agrees, and suddenly they’re standing there, Gina still in Ricky’s arms. It might have been a more awkward situation, if it wasn’t Ricky and Gina. They were so comfortable with each other, even in the middle of the ocean. Gina wondered if maybe they were about to have a moment, when Ricky help his arms out to the side of him, forcing Gina to hold onto him tighter. Ricky leans forward, lowering Gina into the water.

“Ricky! No!” She yells, but it’s too late. She’s already halfway into the water. She gives in. After she’s fallen in, she jumps up, pulling Ricky down into the water with her. The two of them join the others, and they’re all caught in a commotion, splashing each other, jumping on one another. Gina never knew what it was like to have friends like this, to really have any friends at all. She loved it, and she didn’t quite know why she did, but she didn’t care. She’d spent a day, just one day, getting to truly know each other, and she was suddenly afraid that she would lose them. She loved them. Gina Porter loved her friends. 

As the sun went down, they all got back into their cars. Gina and Ricky were still wearing their damp clothes, but nothing really mattered to them. They’d finally had a day where they didn’t have to think about classes, or jobs, or sticking to the plan. When Ricky was in the ocean, he didn’t care that Nini was with someone else. And when Gina was surrounded by her friends, she didn’t feel like she needed to work so hard to guard herself. 

The two of them drove home, watching the sunset out of the window, sneaking glances at each other, and wondering if things might be different now. They hoped they could be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took a while to write! Hope you enjoy!


	6. Caught

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky looks for Gina.

Ricky was freaking out. He had paced around his room, around the apartment, and in and out of Red’s room. He had gotten a call from Nini about an hour ago. She asked if he and Gina would go on a double date with her and Ej, and Ricky agreed. But now he couldn’t get ahold of Gina, and they were supposed to meet at a carnival tonight, and Carlos wasn’t home for him to ask where she was. 

“Dude, you need to calm down.” Red told him after the fifth time Ricky stormed into his room.

“I can’t. Why isn’t she answering?” He groaned.

“Why are you so worried? She’ll call you back when she’s not busy, especially since you left her a hundred messages.” Red told him.

“Look, I haven’t seen Nini like this since we broke up. It’ll just be the four of us, and I need Gina!” Ricky whines.

“Carlos will be home soon, then you can ask him.” Big Red told him. Half an hour later, Carlos walked through the door, and Ricky went running after him.

“Where’s Gina?” He asked.

“What?” Carlos asked, taken by surprise. 

“Nini wants us to double date, and she’s not answering, and I’m losing it!” Ricky explains.

“She’s at the dance studio. She usually practices after her classes, and she turns her phone off to focus.” Carlos tells him, “That’s probably why she’s not answering.”

“Thank you!” Ricky explained, planting a kiss on Carlos’ cheek, then running out the door with his keys in his hands. Ricky had gotten lost a few times on the way to the studio. He’d never actually been there, but he remembered the name because Gina talks about it a lot. 

When he arrived, he was told where she was. Gina didn’t notice Ricky was there when he’d opened the door. She was completely in her element, moving her body to the music coming from the speaker. It was so natural to her. She moved like water. He couldn’t look away, and he didn’t dare to interrupt her. Ricky thought she was beautiful. When she spun around, she finally saw him. She squealed, stopping in the middle of her spin, breathless from her routine. 

“Ricky.” She said, holding a hand over her heart.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt you. You can keep going. I don’t mind.” He said. He was still in a trance, completely in awe by what he just saw. It had calmed him down. He wasn’t even thinking about Nini. 

“What are you doing here?” She asked, walking forward.

“Um, I called you.” He told her. He wanted to explain, but he was still thinking about her dancing, “You’re amazing.”

“Thank you.” She says, looking down at her feet, hoping to hide the blush on her cheeks. 

“I mean, you were good in high school, but wow. I mean...wow.” He said.

“Stop.” She laughed. Her stomach was doing backflips. Why was he suddenly acting this way? They had sat there, staring at each other, but neither of them felt like they had to stop. It was comfortable. When the song on her phone changed, Gina held her hand out to Ricky. “Come on.”

Ricky walked forward, taking her hand, and pulling her close to dance. He didn’t recognize the song, but the lyrics seem to make a lot of sense to him, understanding the way he feels about Gina recently. He and Gina are swaying like they’re in a high school gym. Gina steps back, guiding Ricky in a spin.

“I think I’m supposed to be the one leading.” He says, coming back into her space. 

“So lead.” She said, looking into his eyes. Ricky couldn’t help but wonder if she was still talking about dancing. 

“Um, Nini invited us on a double date with her and Ej.” He said, but he wishes he didn’t because now the moment is ruined, and Gina has stopped swaying. 

“Oh, um, that sounds fun. When?” She asks. Gina should have known better. This wasn’t real. They were together, and they were probably never going to be together. 

“Tomorrow night. They wanna go to a carnival.” He says. Gina nods, stepping away from him, and grabbing her things to leave.

“Give me a ride home?” She asks, and Ricky nods. The car ride feels long and awkward. Neither of them talked. They didn’t come up with a plan for tomorrow. Ricky didn’t pass Gina the AUX. He drove her straight home.

“Guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.” She tells him, opening the door, and walking up to her apartment. The song they danced to had been on repeat that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is really short, but the next chapter will be the date :) The song Ricky and Gina dance to in this is Caught by Florence + the Machine.


	7. In another life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and Gina join Nini and Ej for a double date.

“Why are you so nervous? You were dating Nini for, like, six years. It’s not like you have to get to know her again,” Carlos asks Ricky, “Unless this is about Gina…”

Ricky had gotten ready way too early, and he was currently bothering both Carlos and Red. He and Gina weren’t supposed to meet Nini and Ej until seven, and it was only five. Even though Ricky changed a thousand times, spent time sitting on his phone, and messed with his hair too much, he still managed to be done two hours before they had to leave.

“Give it up, Carlos. You know it’s just to get Nini back.” Ricky said, running his hands through his hair.”

“Ricky, if you mess with your hair one more time, I will cut off your hands.” Carlos threatens him. 

“Here, take this.” Red says, passing him the joint he’d just finished rolling. 

“Okay, the last thing I’m going to do is get high before doing something that’s causing me an insane amount of stress.” Ricky says, shoving Red’s hand from his face.

“That’s exactly why you should be getting high.” Red argues, passing the joint to Carlos.

“Okay, neither of you are helping. I’m going to Gina’s.” Ricky stands up from the couch.

“Of course you are.” Carlos teases, making him and Red laugh.

“Fuck _off_.” Ricky says, before marching out the door. 

Maybe Ricky’s nervousness was in part due to the fact that he and Gina were going on a date. Of course, it wasn’t a real date. He knew that, but this fake dating stuff always made his mind wander back to high school. It always made him wonder what would have happened if he chose Gina, if he made a mistake. 

Eventually, he made it to Gina’s apartment. Ricky sat outside for twenty minutes wondering if he should go inside, if he was overstepping some sort of boundary. However, Ricky was nervous, and Gina always knew how to calm him down, so call him selfish, but he needed her. He made it inside the apartment building, and knocked on her door. 

“Ricky! Hey.” Ashlyn answered the door, stepping aside for him to come in. Walking in, he saw Gina on the couch with seb, watching an old black and white movie.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, lifting her head up from Seb’s shoulder. 

“Sorry, I’m early, but I’m, like, really nervous about this, and I kind of got ready to early and-” Ricky was rambling now, but Gina cut him off.

“No, it’s fine. I should start getting ready, anyways.” She told him, standing up from the couch. She was wearing a pair of black sweatpants and a cropped sweatshirt. Ricky thought she looked softer, somehow. 

She pulled Ricky into her room and connected her phone to her speaker to play music. She moved to the desk near her bed, and pulled her makeup from some of the drawers. Ricky stood in the doorway, unsure of what to do.

“Why are you just standing there? Sit down.” She told him, laughing “You’re nervous?”

“Um, yeah.” He said, looking down at his hands. Although, since entering her apartment, Ricky didn’t feel so nervous anymore.

“Look, don’t worry about it. It’ll be fun! I know you’re broken up, but you’re still friends. And trust me, Nini is probably just as nervous as you are.” She told him, applying her foundation with a sponge. 

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re probably right. Plus, you’ll be there.” He says, earning a smile through the small mirror on her desk. Ricky watched Gina do her makeup, suddenly very interested in it. He didn’t remember ever paying attention to Nini while she did her’s, but he was watching Gina now.

“Why are you staring?” She asks.

“What is that?” He asks, talking about the compact in her left hand.

“It’s highlighter. It goes on your cheekbones.” She laughs.

“Can I see it?” He asks, unaware of why the shiny powder was so interesting to him. Gina moved to sit next to him on the bed, handing the compact to him.

“Want some?” She questioned. He shrugged.

“I don’t know.” He said. She gave him the brush in her hand. 

“Here, you can put it on me.” She told him, leaning forward. He dipped the brush into the powder, bringing it to her face. As he swiped the brush against her skin, he couldn’t help noticing how beautiful she was. After he’d finished, the two of them stared at each other. Ricky’s eyes flickered to her lips, before Gina cleared her throat, standing up from the bed. 

“I’m gonna finish getting ready.” She said, moving back to the desk. Ricky watched Gina finish her makeup, then he watched her look through her closet, slinging clothes around her room. He watched her make a mess, singing to the music on her phone under her breath. To Ricky, Gina always seemed so perfect, but this was a different Gina. She was messy, and frantic, and went back and forth to the bathroom, changing her outfit multiple times. He always thought she had it all figured out.

“Are you ready to go?” She asked, coming back into the room in her last outfit. She was only wearing a yellow top tucked into some mom jeans, and boots, but Ricky thought she was beautiful.

“Yeah,” He smiled, “Let’s go.”

The two of them left the apartment, and drove to meet Nini and Ej, blasting Gina’s playlist on the way. They met the couple outside, with Ricky’s arm slung over Gina’s shoulders, the two of them still laughing about their energetic car ride.

“Hey guys!” Nini greets them, and Gina rushes forward and wraps Nini in a tight hug. It’s weird for Gina since that day on the beach. She wants to be more affectionate, and she feels excited when those who she hadn’t considered friends before, were now people she thought about a lot. 

The four of them walk inside together, Nini and Gina arm in arm as they discuss what they want to do first, while the boys talk about something that they can’t hear. 

“Bumper cars!” Ej gasped, pulling Nini with him, running towards the ride. Gina and Ricky watched as the couple rushed towards the ride.

“Shall we?” Ricky asked, holding his hand out to her. She took it, and they ran after Nini and Ej. The four of them picked their cars and rode around, bumping into each other. At some point, the three of them ganged up on Ricky surrounding his car. He screamed, jumping out of his car and into Gina’s.

“Ricky!” She exclaimed, looking at the workers. There was no room in the car, and Ricky was practically on her lap. Once the workers caught them, they were thrown off the ride.

“We’ve been here for ten minutes! How could you get us kicked off?” Nini playfully scolded Ricky. 

“I can’t help myself.” He shrugged, as Gina shoved him.

“Let’s do some games.” Gina said, pulling Ricky with her. They’d ended up at a milk bottle game where you had to throw a ball at stacks of bottles. 

“Alright, babe, wish me luck.” Ricky told Gina as he threw the ball at the bottles, completely missing. Ej threw his ball at the stack, knocking a few of them down.

“Cheater!” Ricky called.

“How?” Ej laughed, throwing his hands in the air.

“You’re not allowed to play this game if you play water polo. It’s just not fair.” Ricky jokes, shrugging his shoulders. 

The four of them continue to play a couple of games, all of which Ricky was terrible at. Gina ended up being the one to win him a stuffed bear. 

“Wanna do the ferris wheel?” Ricky asked the group, after they’d finished almost everything at the carnival. Everyone agreed, getting in line for it. Ricky wrapped his arms around Gina from behind as they waited, almost unaware that he’d done it. It didn’t make Gina nervous this time. It felt right. They were let onto the ride two at a time, Ricky and GIna getting inside a red cart.

“This has been really fun, Ricky.” Gina tells him, as the wheel moves them backwards.

“It has been.” He smiles, “I’m glad you’re having fun.”

“Yeah. I don’t know. I’m happy. And you know I never really hung out with anyone but Carlos before, but ever since that day on the beach...I don’t know. Something’s different.” Gina tells him. Ricky smiles at her, bringing his arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. The two of them stayed like that for the rest of the ride, looking at the stars and the park below them. It would have been perfect if Ricky hadn’t seen Nini kiss Ej after getting off the ride.

“Shit.” Ricky said, as he and Gina got off.

“I’m sorry, Ricky.” Gina said, watching his face fall.

“It’s okay. I-” He doesn’t really know what to say. He had been around them all night, watched them hold hands and hold each other close. None of it had bothered him until now. He watched as Nini pulled away from Ej, looking at Ricky, making him freeze. 

“Ricky we have to-” Gina started, but she was cut off by Ricky’s lips on hers. Her eyes widened, before she realized that Nini and Ej were probably looking at them. She relaxed, bringing her hand up to cup his face, and kissing him back.

“I’m sorry.” Ricky said after he pulled away. He felt like he had just crossed a line. Gina said that she thought kisses were special, and there he was, kissing her just because Nini kissed Ej. 

“It’s okay.” She told him smiling. She didn’t know why she was feeling so brave, but she pulled him close to her again, pecking his lips quickly before pulling him to Nini and Ej. 

Ricky didn’t even have time to register the kiss. In another life, he was kissing Gina because he wanted to, not as a way of making Nini jealous. In another life, things were different. But this is his life, and Nini has been the only constant thing in his life, and he was going to get her back.

The night came to an end, and Ricky drove Gina home as she played Ciggarettes after sex on her phone. They didn’t speak on the car ride home. When they arrived at Gina’s place, she quietly told Ricky goodbye and left.

In another life, Gina pulled Ricky close and kissed him goodbye. In another life, Gina told Ricky to choose her this time. But this is her life, so Gina goes home, and she sleeps alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These bitches love to repress their feelings huh? Thanks for reading!


	8. Distance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and Gina can't stop thinking about each other.

Gina stared down at her phone, her thumb hovering over Ricky’s name. They hadn’t spoken in a week, not since the kiss, and Gina thought she might be going crazy. Ricky was the one who initiated the kiss. It was his idea, his doing, so why did she feel like she’d ruined everything? 

She throws her phone in her dance bag, and leaves for the studio. She needed to get her mind off of everything. She was worried that she might have lost Ricky again, and she didn’t want to think about it. So she did what she always did when she needed to escape, she danced. 

Only, it wasn’t working. Every song that came on shuffle reminded her of him. Every time she opened her eyes to look in the mirror, her mind wandered back to the time they’d danced in her studio. She barely made it through her class in one piece, screwing up her teaching, and letting out the kids early. She was a mess, and it was all Ricky Bowen’s fault.

Ricky debated calling Gina over and over again. He’d written out multiple texts to send to her, and rehearsed what he’d say if he called, but he failed to actually go through with it. 

He couldn’t stop thinking about how she’d acted after their date. They didn’t say a word to each other the entire ride home, and he couldn’t help but think he’d scared her off. After all, he’d crossed a boundary. Gina told him she probably wasn’t comfortable with kissing, but, then again, she said she would if it came down to it. 

That was the main reason he didn’t call. He felt like an asshole. He’d been impulsive and selfish, and he was only thinking about how it would make Nini feel. But Nini wasn’t the girl he kissed, Gina was, and he didn’t stop to think about how she felt. Not to mention, how Ricky felt after the kiss.

He needed to keep his distance. He’d fucked it all up. 

After an hour of dancing, or an hour of not dancing, Gina decided that she needed to talk to Ricky. He was worth the risk. She sent him a simple message:  _ we need to talk _ .

Gina showed up to Ricky’s apartment that night. She didn’t know how it would go. She didn’t know if she would be walking away from Ricky for the second time, but she was prepared for the worst.

When Ricky opened the door, the first thing Gina noticed was that he looked terrible. He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair looked more like a bird’s nest than usual, and his lips were chapped, not that Gina was looking at his lips. 

“Hi, Gi.” He said, smiling warily. Ricky was just as nervous as she was.

“Are we okay?” She blurted, before he could even let her inside, “I mean, I don’t know what I mean. Why won’t you talk to me?”

“I-” Ricky starts, stunned, “I thought-I didn’t think you’d want to talk.”

“Why?” She asked, her brows knitted in a frown.

“Because I kissed you, and when we started this you said you wouldn’t do it. And I completely fucking ignored it. I broke a rule, and I’m such an asshole for it. I didn’t think about how you’d feel or if it would make you uncomfortable. I’m sorry. You don’t have to forgive me, but I need you to know that I’m sorry.”

Gina was completely taken aback. She remembered telling him that, and at one point it was true, but Gina wanted to kiss Ricky. She wanted to kiss him bad. But she knows better, and she knows that the kiss meant nothing, so she won’t tell him. 

“Ricky,” She smiled, “It’s okay. Look, when we made those rules, I barely knew you. At least, I didn’t think I knew you. If you want to kiss me to make Nini jealous, you can. Just...warn me first.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, and I don’t want you to think you  _ have _ to do anything.” He said, running a nervous hand through his hair. 

“I’m sure. You’re-” Gina pauses, afraid of opening up, “You’re my best friend. You are, and I want to help you. And I miss you. So don’t leave me hanging for a week.”

It surprises Ricky, her sudden transparency. For most of their time together, he felt like she was keeping him at arm's length. He was learning more about her, who she was now, like how named her plants, how she read a lot, how she liked old movies now. But it was never deep enough for Ricky to get close. Sure, he knew a lot about her, her likes and dislikes, but Gina never talked about how she felt about him, or even Carlos, who was the closest person to her.

“You’re my best friend, too.” He says, and it’s all he says, because he doesn’t know what else to say. He’d kicked himself for letting her go. He missed her every day, and here she was. Gina Porter was his best friend again. 

Gina steps forward, pulling Ricky into a tight hug. Emotions have never been easy for the two of them. They were alike in the sense that they liked to keep things bottled up. They’d been hurt before. They didn’t know why, but it was always easy to be emotional with each other. They understood one another, and understanding was something the two of them had always valued most.  After they made up, and failed miserably at hiding their tear soaked eyes, Ricky and Gina settled in on his couch. She picked and old movie called  _ The Way We Were _ , which Ricky had never seen. Ten minutes after it started, Carlos and Big Red got home with takeout, the two of them joining them on the couch. They passed their food back and forth while watching the movie. By then end, they were all crying. The four of them fell asleep on the couch that night, Gina curled up into Ricky’s side. She couldn’t have asked for better friends. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not to be a swiftie but...."pauses, then says, you're my best friend"...Maybe they're in love.


	9. Something's Different

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and Red have a skating competition. Carlos and Seb fight. And Gina and Ej have doubts.

For reasons unknown to him, Red had entered himself and Ricky into a skating competition in Venice. The two of them hadn’t participated in competitions since freshman year of high school. They had entered a local one when they started college, which Ricky won, but they were busy, now. Competitions also always stressed Big Red out. He loved to sign up, and he’d get all excited before they actually got there. Then he’d get nervous and back out, or screw up while skating.

But the community was nice there. Sure, it was a competition, but no one really acted better than anyone else. Especially since they were amateur competitions. 

Ricky always thought they were fun, and he knew he was good. But he didn’t want to have to focus on this when he was dealing with feelings for two girls.

However, Big Red forced him, like he always did, and soon the group had gathered in their cars, and took a trip to the beach.

Ricky and Red got there first, and signed in before meeting the others at one of the shops near the competition. When he saw Gina, he headed straight for her, intertwining their fingers. Ever since they made up, the two of them had gotten far more comfortable with little things like this, even when they were performing for anyone. 

The group walked around for a while, each of them forming small groups within their own. Carlos and Seb had fallen behind, and they’d caught everyone’s attention once Carlos’ voice pierced through the air.

“Because you don’t make any time for me!” He said, his voice louder than before.

“I don’t have any time for you!” Seb shot back, his shoulders slumping in defeat at what he’d just said. Gina looked at Ricky, worried for her best friend. Carlos was silent. He took one look at his friends, who had just watched the altercation, and turned to leave. Gina and Ashlyn shared a look, understanding that they needed to be there for the boys.

“I have to go check on him.” Gina told Ricky, pulling her hand from his grasp.

“Do you want me to come with you?” He questioned, concerned.

“It might be better if it’s just me.” She told him, leaving to go after Carlos.

The boy was fast. It had took Gina a while to find him. She finally did, spotting the boy on a bench looking out at the beach. She jogged towards him, and took a seat next to him. She said nothing, waiting for him to talk. 

“I like him so much, Gi. And I tried to keep it casual, because that’s what he wanted, and I get that he’s focused on school, and he’s determined, and that’s what I love about him!” Carlos explained, “But I was getting tired, you know? I don’t want to just sit there and be his friend, when we both know we have something! So I told him how I felt. I want to be his boyfriend. I don’t want to distract him, I just want to be there for him. And maybe I didn’t articulate that well, and maybe it sounded selfish, but I think I love him...And I know he loves me.”

“Are you sure both of you want this? Are you sure it’s not just you?” She asks. Carlos has never been open about his relationship with Seb. It started out as a little crush, and then somehow they started to hang out all the time, but Seb never let it go farther than that. Any time Gina tried to get some information out of Seb, he’d deny his feelings.

“I’m sure. I’ve never been more sure about anything. When we’re alone, when he’s not thinking about his studies or holding back, it’s like we’re the only two people alive. We talk about the future, a future together!” He tells her, and he has tears in his eyes now.

“Oh, Carlos,” Gina coes, pulling him into a tight hug, “I can’t speak for Seb, but I know what it’s like to be afraid of any kind of closeness. Romance, love...it’s based on vulnerability, and it’s scary.”

“But he is vulnerable with me. He just won’t take that step to actually be with me, because he’s so determined to be the best in all of his classes, but he already is the best! Nobody doubts that he won’t get a lead on broadway the moment he graduates.” Carlos says.

“I know. I think that the best thing for the both of you, at least for today, is to keep your distance. And when you’re ready, when he’s ready, I think you need to have a long talk about what you both want. And you need to tell him that, no matter what, you just want to be there for him.” Gina advises, “You’re not a distraction, and if Seb likes you, you’re right, he should make time for you. But I think you need to talk about it when you’re alone.”

“You’re right,” He sighed, “You’re so damn wise, you know that?”

“I’m just trying to be a good friend. I don’t like to see you like this. Stick with me today, okay? Don’t worry about what happened. We’re gonna have fun, okay?” She tells him, standing up from the bench and holding her hand out to him. 

The two of them walked together, hand in hand, back to where they’d last been with the group. They were still there, but Ashlyn and Seb were missing. Their remaining friends surrounded Carlos when he arrived, asking if he was okay, and showering him with hugs. They were supportive of the both of them, no matter the outcome. After they finished talking, Ashlyn and Seb returned. Before anyone could say anything, Seb began to talk. 

“I’m sorry, Carlos. I don’t think it’s the best idea to talk about this right now, but I don’t want to avoid you, and I don’t want it to be awkward.” Seb told him. Carlos was silent for a moment.

“Me neither.” He said, pulling Seb into a hug, and soon enough, they were acting like nothing had ever happened. 

After the drama was settled, Ricky and Red decided they needed to practice before the competition, so the group found a skate park, and watched the two of them.

They sat together nearby, watching the two boys go ride over ramps and practice their tricks. Ricky couldn’t stop noticing Nini and Ej talking and laughing, pecking each other’s cheeks, and holding each other. It was distracting him, putting him off his game, and the only way he was going to get Nini’s attention was to do the same with Gina. He rode up to the group, hopping off his board, and walking to Gina. 

“Come here.” He told her, taking both of her hands, and helping her off of the ground. He pulled her towards his board.

“Oh, hell no.” She said, pulling her hands from his and walking backwards.

“Come on! You’ll be good at it! You’re a dancer!” He argues.

“Do it, Gi!” Kourtney yells, and the rest of the group cheers her on.

“I won’t let you fall.” Ricky tells her, but he lowers his voice so that the rest of the group can’t hear him. Too late. 

Gina looks back at her friends, most of which have supportive smiles on their faces. However, she does notice that Nini has a look on her face that she can’t quite place, possibly a look of longing. Gina turns back to Rick, staring down at the board. 

He takes her hands as she steps onto it. She leans forward, almost losing her balance, but quickly catches herself. 

“Ready?” He asks, stepping onto the board behind her.

“What are you doing?” She hisses, losing her balamce, and falling back into him, where he catches her.

“Do you trust me?” He asks, his breath hot on her neck from the closeness.

“I guess.” She says, shakily. Ricky brings his hands to her waist, then pushes off the board, sending them forward. Gina squeals, desperately trying to keep her balance. The two of them don’t go very far, so Ricky pushes off again, and now Gina is having fun. She’s laughing, and yelling, and her friends are cheering them on. It only lasts for a second, before Ricky slows them down to a stop. 

“That was kind of fun.” She smiles.

“It’s too crowded here to actually go anywhere, but when we get back home, I’ll teach you for real.” He promises. Gina holds her pinky up to him to swear on it, and he hooks his pinky with hers.

After watching Ricky and Big Red skate some more, it finally becomes time for the boys to actually compete.They’re each given a number to put on their shirts, and their names are called off one by one. A few other skaters go before their turn, and they’re really good. Ricky starts to feel nervous. Eventually, his name is called.

“Hey, Gi. How about a good luck kiss.” He teases, looking towards her. She walks forward, leaning towards him and pecking his cheek.

“Maybe after you win.” She says, earning some coos from their friends. It’s motivation enough for Ricky to go out. He does really well, and the crowd is cheering loudly for him. All is well, until he grinds over a metal railing, where he fumbles at the end. He slips, falling back and hitting his head on the corner of the metal. The crowd gasps, and Gina and Nini rush over to him. He had his helmet on, but he was still on the ground, and hadn’t moved.

Gina watched as Ricky opened his eyes, discombobulated from the fall. He looks between Gina and Nini, before reaching his hand out to cup Nini’s cheek.

“Nini.” He groans, before passing out. 

  
Ej, Nini, and Gina rush Ricky to the hospital, and they’re told he has a concussion. He had woken up before in the hospital room, but no one was allowed to see him until they ran some more tests. Eventually, they were allowed in one by one. Nini volunteers to go first.

Gina and Ej, sitting out in the waiting room, both have the same thing going through their minds. They were going to get back together. It was going to take something like this to bring them closer, and Gina and Ej would be left in the dust. Gina looks toward Ej, who’s bouncing his leg up and down.

“Are you okay?” She asks. He looks at her before stopping his leg from bouncing.

“Yeah.” He lies, “Aren’t you nervous?”

“I mean, they said he’s okay now-” She starts, but Ej cuts her off.

“That’s not what I mean.” He says, and Gina knows exactly what he’s talking about.

“Do you wanna go get a coffee?” She asks. The two of them go to find the hospital cafeteria. While Ej pushes the button on the coffee machine, he speaks up.

“Do you think she’ll take him back?” His words are calm, almost casual, as if they weren’t discussing their two significant others getting back together. Gina sighs next to him, trying to relax herself, trying to prepare herself to lie to him.

“I don’t know.” She tells him honestly, because with the way things are going, Gina keeps letting herself hope for an actual relationship with Ricky. While Ricky does do things on purpose to make Nini jealous when she’s around, he also lays his head on her shoulder while they’re watching movies, and he flirts with her when he doesn’t have to. Sometimes, part of her believes that he’ll get over her, that he’ll choose her this time. But the logical part of her tells her that this is temporary, that even if she and Ricky are as close as they are now, she still won’t be his first choice.

“Why do you seem so calm about this? I don’t want to bum you out, and I’m not saying all this to be mean, but you have to see the way they look at each other. And I know they’re romantic looks, because--because they look at us that way too.” Ej says. Gina doesn’t really know why he’s opening up to her like this, but now she can see a little bit of Ashlyn in him. To Gina, Ej always seemed well put together, like nothing could ever get to him. Ashlyn was strong, but she always let people know how she was feeling. Somehow, they seem so similar.

“I am worried, Ej.” Gina snaps, “Sorry. I am. Ricky and I...have history, and he chose her then, and every day I’m afraid he’ll choose her now. But it doesn’t do anything to think about it, at least not for me.”

“I’m sorry.” He says, “I...I think I love her.”

Gina doesn’t know why she cares so much, why after one conversation with him, she feels like she needs to comfort him. Maybe it’s the fact that her entire relationship with Ricky is based on stealing Ej’s girlfriend from him. Or maybe it’s that she thinks she loves Ricky, too. Maybe it’s that they’re going through the same thing. 

“It’ll be okay.” She tells him sincerely, squeezing his hand. After such a serious conversation, the two of them make their way through the hospital, back to the waiting room. As they walk, their conversation becomes less heavy, and the two of them find themselves talking about the day before it went south. When they arrive at the waiting room, Nini is waiting for them.

“He’s asking for you.” Nini tells Gina, and she thinks she might be a little nervous. “Room 256.”

Gina thanks Nini, gives Ej a smile, and walks through the double doors to a long corridor. She looks at the numbers, counting down. She stands before Ricky’s room, preparing herself to see him.

“Gina.” Ricky smiles lazily. When she walks in, she doesn’t even remember why she felt nervous to see him.

“Hi, Ricky.” She smiles, “How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine. Just a headache.” He tells her.

“That’s good. I mean, not good that you’re hurting, but good that it’s only a headache.” She rambles, mentally kicking herself for being so nervous. “Sorry, you just...really scared me.”

“Yeah. Sorry.” He shrugs, “I saw you, you know. When I fell, you were right there.”

“Yeah, so was Nini.” Gina smiles, sadly, but he doesn’t notice.

“She told me.” He says.

“You almost blew our cover, you know.” Gina walks forward, “Before you passed out, you said her name in this dreamy voice.”

“I did?” He asked, closing his eyes in embarrassment. Gina is teasing him, but Ricky’s reaction to seeing Nini hover over him before he passed out, and the fact that she was the one by his side this whole time showed Gina just how much he liked her. 

“What did you guys talk about?” Gina asked, curiously.

“I don’t want to talk about that.” He told her.

“Why?” She questioned.

“Come here.” He said. Gina tilted her head.

“What?” She laughed.

“Come here.” He repeated, holding his arm out to her. She walked forward, taking his hand, and letting him pull her closer to the hospital bed. Rick moved over to the side of the bed to make room for Gina, as she sat next to him. He snuck his arm around her waist, pulling her close, as she brought her hand up to play with his hair. 

Moments later, Nini and Ej walk through the door. Ricky and Ej joke about his fall, and the four of them talk about the day. There’s talk that Ricky totally would have won if he didn’t fall. The doctor comes in later to tell Ricky he’s allowed to go home, but he needs to take it easy. Nini and Ej leave before, Gina letting them know that she’ll be able to drive Ricky home, and to tell the others that he’s okay. 

Ricky and Gina leave holding hands without anyone around to see. Something’s different. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. There's a lot happening in this one. I was thinking of splitting this up into two chapters, but I decided it made more sense for it to all be one chapter. Sorry this one took a while. School has been kind of busy for me, but I hope you guys like this one! Thanks for reading!


	10. Reflections

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky shows Gina a song.

Carlos had invited Gina over to hang out like old times. The two of them hadn’t seen each other out of group settings, and they were in serious need of alone time. Gina had gone to get snacks for them, and she was hoping that maybe Ricky or Red had some weed. They didn’t get to do it often, but sometimes, when she and Carlos were especially stressed, they’d share a joint and watch The Simpsons. Gina knew that both she and Carlos were stressed.

When she walked into Carlos’ room, she saw Carlos holding hands with the source of his stress, Seb. They were clearly in the middle of a heart to heart, and Gina didn’t want to interrupt that. She murmured a quick apology and closed the door. 

Carlos sent her a text letting her know that he and Seb would be done talking soon. He wouldn’t ditch her for Seb, but they were discussing something important. Gina understood, and because she had time to spare, she figured she’d see if Ricky was home. Walking down the hall, she knocked on his door, before she heard his voice through the door, telling her to come in. 

“Gina, hey! What are you doing here?” Ricky asked as she walked in. He was sitting on his bed with his guitar in his lap, and a notebook open in front of him. 

“Carlos and I were supposed to hang out, but Seb’s in there right now. Um, I can just wait in the living room if you’re busy-” She said, but he cut her off.

“What? No, no you’re fine. Come sit.” He told her, setting his guitar down. She walked to his bed, sitting next to him.

“Were you writing?” She asked, looking at his notebook.

“Oh, yeah. I have a chorus, but I’m still working on the rest.” He tells her.

“Can I hear it?” She asked, hopeful.

“If you’re not really interested, you don’t have to say that to make me feel good-” He says, but Gina laughs.

“Are you kidding? I’d love to hear it, Ricky.” She says. She couldn’t believe that he’d think she wouldn’t want to hear something he wrote. She’s never actually heard an original song of his before, and she always wished that she had. When they were younger, he’d always promise to show her songs he’d written, but he never went through with it.

“Seriously?” He asked. 

“We’ve got the time.” She smiled, and for a second, Ricky experienced a sense of deja vu.

Ricky pulls his guitar back into his lap. He opens his notebook back up, and strums his guitar a few times. He looks up at Gina, who’s watching him, waiting for him to start. He’s not as nervous as he was when they were in high school, and she asked to hear him sing When There Was Me and You, but he was definitely nervous. He started singing.

“Where have you been? Do you know if you're coming back?” Ricky sings. Gina observes how his voice has changed over the years. It’s matured a little more, and it’s only gotten better.  
“We were too close to the stars. I never knew somebody like you, somebody. Falling just as hard.” Gina smiles at the lyrics.

“I'd rather lose somebody than use somebody. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise. I see my reflection in your eyes.” He finishes, looking up at her. She smiles at him as he moves his guitar, but her face becomes serious. They don’t know how, but they’re suddenly aware of how close they are to each other. Ricky’s eyes flicker to her lips, before looking back into her eyes.

“Ricky…” Gina warns, even though she doesn’t want to stop him.

“Don’t say anything.” He says, his voice barely above a whisper. Gina closes her eyes, as Ricky’s hand comes up to cup her face, and pull her closer. She braces herself, ready to feel his lips on her’s, but then someone opens Ricky’s door. 

The two of the jolt apart quickly, averting their eyes from each other. Gina looks towards the door and sees Carlos. He freezes for a moment, before he turns away quickly, and shuts the door. Ricky doesn’t say anything to Gina. He doesn’t even look at her, so she stands up and rushes out of the room.

Once she’s in the hallways, she lets out a couple of deep breaths. Gina Porter almost kissed Ricky Bowen. And Carlos had to ruin it.

Gina may have been disappointed, but she wouldn’t have been brought back to reality if he hadn’t barged in. 

Ricky and Gina weren’t and actual couple. Their almost-kiss was in the heat of the moment, and Gina knew that he still loved Nini. She shook her head, pushing their encounter to the back of her mind, and headed to Carlos’ room. Ricky Bowen wouldn’t get to her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Throwing it back to when there was me and you. Can't believe they almost kissed!! Sorry this is so short. Thank you for reading!


	11. Confessions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and Gina confront their feelings.

“Tell me what happened. Now.” Carlos demanded once Gina had entered his room. She stood there, her back against the door, as he waits for her to explain.

“No,” She finally gets out, “No, not yet. I need some more time to think. Tell me what happened with Seb.”

“Are you sure?” He asked.

“Yeah.” Gina nodded. Carlos looked at her, then pulled her away from the door so he was sitting on his bed with him. He reluctantly started to talk about Seb.

  
“It wasn’t supposed to go as long as it did, but I think we needed that talk. I told him what I wanted. I told him that I can’t just be a ‘friend’, because, let’s be real, we aren’t just friends. And he argued with me, and he brought up the excuse about school, and having no time. And then it got really quiet. Neither of us really knew what to say, and he told me, in like the tiniest voice that he loves me.” Carlos explained, a large smile growing on his lips.

“Carlos! That’s amazing!” Gina told him.

“I know. I told him that I loved him back, and he said that he’s willing to try with me. He wants to be with me, but we just need to take it slow.” Carlos said. “I’m really happy, Gi.”

“I can tell.” She smiled, “I’m glad you worked it out. I hated seeing you all stressed out about this.”

“Speaking of stress…” Carlos starts, “What happened with Ricky?”

“It was stupid. It was a heat of the moment thing.” She said, looking down at her hands in her lap.

“It didn’t look stupid to me.” Carlos mused. Gina sighed, knowing that she wasn’t going to get over this unless she said what she was truly feeling. It was something that Ricky taught her.

“He showed me this song, and his lyrics...I could have sworn they were about me, or about us. We had this moment years ago after rehearsal for the musical, where he sang to me, and it felt just like that. It actually felt better than that. After he finished, we just...leaned in. And then you ruined it.” Gina explained.

“How was I supposed to know you guys were kissing! This is a fake relationship!” He says.

“I know, and I don’t want it to be.” She says, sadly.

“So tell him that.” Carlos urged.

“I can't! He still loves Nini. It’s not me. It’s never going to be me! He loves her, and he’s loved her his whole life, and there’s nothing I can do about that.” She says, defeated. 

“They’re not the same people they were in high school.” Carlos says, “And I’ve heard him talk about her. They haven’t made any progress since I met them, and I doubt they’ve made any progress since high school. She’s safe, and you represent everything he’s afraid of, but that’s also everything that’s good for him. He’s different around you. And you’re different around him.”

“Maybe. Maybe we’re perfect for each other, and maybe you can see that, but that doesn’t mean he will. This is all for her, everything we’re doing.” Gina argues.

“You’ll never know until you try. Just talk to him.” 

“No. I can’t, Carlos. I lost him before, and I can’t lose him again. And if it means watching him choose Nini for the second time just so we can stay friends, then I will.” She says, and it breaks Carlos’ heart.

“But you love him.” He says, his voice barely above a whisper.

“I do. I love him enough to let him go.” She says. They end the conversation there. It’s all too depressing, and Carlos just wants to make Gina feel better. So the two of them watch a bad horror movie, and they eat junk food, and for a while Gina’s back to where she was before Ricky.

In Red’s room, Ricky has situated himself on Red’s bed, lying in his lap, while he listens to him talk about Gina.

“I think I like her, man. I think...I think it might be more, but I’m too afraid to admit that right now.” Ricky tells him.

“Then you should tell her.” Big Red suggests.

“But, what if she doesn’t feel that same? And what about Nini? Am I supposed to just throw away all those years I spent with her?” Ricky questions.

“Yes.” Red says, with a straight face, “Look, Nini was great...for a high school girlfriend. You’ve outgrown each other. You want different things. She’ll always be your friend, but you aren’t compatible anymore.”

“And why didn’t you tell me all of this while we were dating?” He asks.

“You had to figure it out for yourself, dude.” He says.

“So, then what about Gina?” Ricky asks.

“What about her? She clearly likes you. She almost kissed you ten minutes ago! You can’t seriously be this clueless.” Red tells him.

“I think I made a mistake in high school. Red, I think it’s always been her. And I feel so stupid for not figuring that out until now.” Ricky sighs.

“You’re not the same person you were in high school. You grew up, and thank god for that.”

“Hey!” Ricky says, offended.

“I’m just saying! She makes you better, and you do the same for her.” Red says, “All you have to do is tell her.”

Ricky sits up from his position in Red’s lap. He had to tell her. Ricky felt like he might explode if he didn’t tell Gina how he felt. And he would have done that if it weren’t for the sound of his doorbell ringing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These bitches are in love! Good for them! Good for them!


	12. Lies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nini comes over.

When Ricky answer’s the door, the last person he expects to see is Nini. She looks tired, like she’d been up the night before, the familiar look on her face that Ricky knows all too well. It’s the face that’s supposed to tell you that she’s fine, but Ricky, the boy who has known her since kindergarten, sees right through it.

“Can we talk?” She asks, forcing a smile onto her face. She and Ricky head to the kitchen.

In Carlos’ room, he and Gina are halfway through The Evil Dead, and Carlos decides he needs something to drink.

“Gigi…” Carlos says, lying his head on her shoulder. Whenever he calls her ‘Gigi’, he wants her to do something.

“What do you want?” She asks, raising her eyebrows.

“Just wanted to say that I love you.” He tells her in a sing-song voice, causing Gina to roll her eyes, “And I also want some water.”

“You are the worst.” She says, standing up from his bed. 

“Thank you!” He calls, drawing out the word ‘you’, as she walks down the hallway. She shakes her head at him, happy to be hanging out with him like old times again. As she walked down the hall towards the kitchen, she could hear voices. As she got closer, she realized Ricky and Nini were talking in the Kitchen.

“Ricky, I still love you.” When Gina heard Nini say this, she stopped in her tracks. She stood behind the wall, not wanting to interrupt their conversation, but wanting to hear it. Maybe it was selfish, but she and Ricky had been fake dating for a while now. This was the moment he was waiting for, right?

“Nini,” She heard Ricky sigh, “Nini, I-I love you too, but-”

“But what?” Nini asked, “I was an idiot. I need you.”

“You need me? All of the sudden, you need me?” Ricky’s angry now, “You didn’t need me when you brought Ej to my birthday right after we broke up!”

“I told you, I made a mistake! I shouldn’t have brought him. I shouldn’t have dated him at all.” She argued. Gina didn’t understand. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Wasn’t this what Ricky wanted?

“Dated?” Ricky asks.

“We broke up.” Nini reveals. 

“Nini-” He starts, but she cuts him off.

“I miss you.” She tries.

“Nini, I’m with Gina now. And I really like her.” Ricky told her, “I think it’s for the best if we stayed apart for a while.”

“So, that’s what this is, then. You’re just gonna throw my words back at me? You don’t even want to talk about this?” Nini asks. From what Gina can gather, it seems that Nini had told Ricky the same thing when they broke up.

“Doesn’t feel great, does it?” He shoots back at her. 

“Okay, Ricky.” Nini’s voice cracks, “Fine.”

Gina hears her footsteps getting further and further away, until she hears the front door slam. Gina doesn’t know what to think, but there’s one thing she’s certain of: Ricky was too harsh. She moved away from her hiding spot behind the wall, and walked towards the kitchen.

“Gina.” Ricky says, surprised to see her.

“What was that?” She asks.

“How much did you hear?” He questioned, stepping closer to her. Gina took a step back.

“All of it.” She snaps, “What was this all for, Ricky? I thought you wanted to get her back.”

“I did-” He starts, but she cuts him off.

“Was this all just a way to hurt her, a way to get back at her for breaking up with her?” Gina asks. 

“No! No, not at first. Maybe it was at some point, but then it wasn’t again-” He stops himself. He had to be honest. He did want to hurt Nini like she hurt him. In the beginning, he just wanted Nini to realize what she was missing, but then he watched her and Ej act like a couple around him, and he wanted Nini to feel that way, too. But, then he realized that it wasn’t about Nini anymore. He liked Gina.

“What the hell, Ricky? So you’ve been lying to me?” Gina asks, angry.

“Hey, I never lied to you.” He says, a little forceful.

“No, you just kept the reason we did all of this a secret.” She fired back, sarcastically. 

“Well, what about you?” He argues, “What’s your reason?”

“My reason?” She asks, unsure.

“Yeah. Why did you agree to this?” He asks, again. He wants her to say it. He wants her to tell him that she agreed, because she loved him, because she wanted to be with him, because maybe it would lead to something real.

“Because…” She trails off.

“Because what?” He asked. 

“Because you forced me!” She exclaims. She regrets it immediately, her shoulders visibly falling, and Ricky can see her shrink into herself. 

“So, that’s how you feel?” He asks, defeated. She doesn’t say anything, but there’s finally time for the two of them to stop, to actually look at each other. They both have tears in their eyes, and they’re clearly upset. But because the two of them can't admit anything, because they keep it all bottled up, they say nothing. And Gina leaves. She leaves, just like she did before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The angst of it all. Thanks for reading!


	13. Honesty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gina realizes some things with help from Ej.

It had been weeks since Gina had seen Ricky. The break-up, or whatever they were calling it, forced Gina to isolate herself. It forced Ricky to isolate himself, too. 

She’d regretted it, blowing up on him for rejecting Nini, telling him he forced her into their fake relationship. Their arrangement was the best thing to ever happen to either of them. They need each other, and everyone who loves them can see that.

When she and Ricky stopped talking, Gina threw herself into her dancing. She worked for hours a day, avoiding Ashlyn and Seb at home, and talking only to Carlos. She’d reverted back to her old self, the girl who kept her walls up, who feared that letting anyone in would get her hurt. And it did. 

Ricky shut himself up in his room all day. He skipped class most weeks, and his only comfort was his guitar. He’d lost her again, and he lost her all because he couldn’t tell her how he really felt to her face, just like he’d done before. He was back to being the same old Ricky, a boy who kept his feelings inside, who feared that if he ever said what he really felt, he’d ruin everything. And he did. 

One Sunday morning, Gina had gotten a call from none other than Ej Caswell. She’d felt like everything was crashing down around her. She’d lied to him before, and now he was going to tell her off for it, but when she picked up the phone, he asked her to meet up.

Against everything that was telling her not to, Gina agreed, and met him at a cafe for lunch. She’d walked into the place, spotting Ej at a both. She’d caught him wringing his hands nervously, when he looked up to see her. He sent a small wave as she walked towards the table.

“Gina! Hey.” He greeted her, standing up from the table and smiling. It made Gina feel weird. She thought he would be angry with her. She figured that Ricky had told everyone the truth, and if not everyone, then definitely Nini.

“Hi, Ej.” She told him, smiling politely as she sat down. 

“How are you doing?” He asked, “I heard about you and Ricky.”

“You did?” She asked. She wondered if he heard that they broke up, or if he heard that they’d lied. 

“Yeah, I um, I couldn’t believe it. You guys seemed so perfect for each other.” He told her sincerely. It broke her heart to think that people had seen them that way, when it was all a performance.

“Thank you.” She says, sadly, staring down at her lap. She doesn’t know what comes over her, but she realizes he has to tell him the truth. “Ej, I have to tell you something, and it’s going to show you how much of an asshole I can be, and you’re not going to want to stay friends with me, which honestly sucks because I think you’re a really good guy, but that’s also why I need to tell you this.”

“What are you talking about?” Ej laughs.

“Ricky and I were fake dating so that he could get Nini back.” She admits, waiting for his reaction. She watched Ej’s face drop at her confession, but he recovers quickly.

“What?” He questions.

“I’m sorry, Ej.” She tells him sincerely.

“So, all that talk at the hospital, about being worried about the two of them...that was all a lie?” He asks.

“No! No, not at all.” Gina tells him, “You’re completely obligated to storm out of here and never talk to me again, but it would mean a lot to me if you just listened to me.”

“Okay,” Ej nodded, “So talk.”

“It wasn’t a lie. I was worried about them. Ricky and I almost dated in high school, or maybe we weren’t quite at that point, but sometimes it really felt that way. But eventually, he chose Nini, and I moved away, and we stopped talking. When they broke up, and Ricky needed a way to get Nini back, I was there. I was the perfect choice.” Gina explains.

“But how would that help him get her back. Nini wouldn’t try to go back to him if she knew you were with him.” Ej wonders.

“But she would. She did, actually.” Gina reveals. She didn’t know if Nini had told Ej, or if she’d even broken up with Ej before going to see Ricky, but now he knew, “I didn’t think it would be that big a deal. I actually didn’t think it would actually happen, but it ended up going farther than I ever thought it would, and I fell for him. I fell for him even harder than I did in high school.”

“Wow.” Is all Ej says.

“And I’m sorry about all of it. I didn’t want to hurt you, and I get it if you completely hate me now, but I really hope you don’t...because I can really use some friends.” Gina tells him, and there are tears in her eyes. She didn’t know why it was so easy to open up to him, to show him how she felt. He unknowingly knocked down her walls in the same way that Carlos did. 

“Gina, I don’t hate you. I’ll admit, I’m a little shocked, and I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t hurt, but I don’t hate you.” Ej tells her, “Plus, I could use some friends too.”

“Good.” Gina says, her eyes still wet. 

“Can I ask you why you broke up? If you fell for him?’ Ej asks.

“Nini didn’t tell you?” Gina asks.

“Um, Nini and I broke up.” Ej says, feeling awkward.

“Oh,” Gina says, “Then I guess they’re together, then.”

“No, they’re actually not.” He tells her, making Gina’s eyes snap up to him.

“What?” She asked.

“Can you tell me what Nini didn’t tell me?” He asks.

“She went to Ricky’s and told him she missed him. He, um, rejected her, and I saw the whole thing, and I kind of blew up on him. I said all these things I didn’t mean, and I regret all of it. But it doesn’t matter now, because they’ll be back together by the end of the week.” Gina says, hopelessly.

“Gina, Ricky and Nini aren’t together, and I don’t think they’ll be together any time soon.” Ej explains, “Nini and I decided to try being friends first. We aren’t even sure if we even work as a couple. She told me she needs a break.”

“I mean, even if Nini is out of the picture, Ricky lied to me.” Gina tells him.

“What do you mean?” He questions, curiously.

“He basically used our fake relationship as a chance to reject Nini when he had the chance. We had all these moments together, and I can’t even be sure if they were real, or just something to brag to Nini about.” She sighs.

“I don’t think that’s what he was trying to do.” Ej argues.

“How do you know?” She asks, defensively.

“I have never seen anyone act the way you two do. It’s like you’re on your honeymoon, and like you’ve been together for years. You know each other like you know yourselves. I remember at the carnival, Ricky got you a soda, and threw it to you, and you caught it without even looking up. It was like you knew he was gonna do that.” Ej tells her.

“I did. He likes to do that. He likes to catch people off guard.” Gina smiles fondly.

“But not you. You know him.” Ej says, “And he knows you. And it’s clear he cares about you. Your relationship may have been fake, but your feelings aren’t.”

“Ej…” Gina trails off.

“And maybe it all goes to shit. Maybe you don’t end up together, maybe all your fears are proven true, but you told me something almost happened in high school? Do you want Ricky to be your almost?” He questioned.

Ej was right. Gina had lost Ricky years ago, and it had affected them both the same way. They missed each other, and their distance followed them everywhere. Gina felt alive with Ricky. He was the only guy who had ever made her feel that way, the only guy who truly knew her. She knew she had to be a fool to let him go. Gina decides she can’t let him go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gina and Ej WILL be serving siblings excellence next season, so of course I had to make him knock some sense into her for this. Thanks for reading!


	14. I'm Yours

Gina was sat in the passenger side of Ej’s truck, parked outside the apartment Carlos shared with Ricky and Big Red. 

“I can’t do this.” Gina says, looking out the window to the apartment. 

“You can do this.” Ej assured her. 

“No, Ej. I can’t.” She pushes.

“Do you love him?” He asks.

“No.” Gina grumbled, sliding down in her seat.

“Yes you do.” He says. Gina looks at him. He didn’t have to do this for her. He didn’t have to do anything. In fact, Gina thinks he should actually hate her for lying to him and everyone else, but he doesn’t. Ej didn’t even know Gina all that well, but he felt so protective of her. He’d always been that way with the people in his life. 

Gina looks back up at the apartment. She takes a deep breath, and then moves to open the car door. Before she leaves, she stops to look at Ej again. 

“Ej.” She says, “Thank you. I hope...I hope you find someone who deserves you.”

“Yeah. Me too.” He laughs, “Go!”

“I’m going!” She says, hopping out of his truck. She makes her way to the door of the apartment, preparing herself to see Ricky. When she knocks, Big Red answers.

“Gina? What are you doing here?” The surprise is evident on his face. No one thought that Gina would be the first to reach out. She definitely never thought it would be so soon. 

“Is Ricky home?” She asks, her voice soft. 

“Yeah...but I don’t know if you really want to see him right now.” Big Red says. Ricky looked like shit, and he was sad every day, and Red knew that Ricky wouldn’t want Gina seeing him like that.

“Please.” She begs, her voice cracking. Red can’t help it. They’re both hurting, and they needed to see each other. He opens the door wider to let her in, and he leads her to Ricky’s room.

“Look, he’s a mess. Just...be gentle.” He tells her. Gina nods as Red knocks on the door. Ricky sits on his bed with a guitar on his lap. The first thing Gina notices are the dark circles under his eyes.

“Gina?” He’s surprised too. Big Red pats Gina’s shoulder, and leaves the two of them in the room. 

“Oh, Ricky.” Gina says, looking at the state he’s in.

“What are you doing here?” He asks. His voice isn’t exactly hostile, but it’s not friendly either. 

“I-I wanted to apologize.” She says.

“Go ahead.” He says. 

“Oh,” Gina thought that was the apology, but she could do more, “I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry for blowing up on you, and for telling you that you forced me. The truth is...the truth is that I would do it all over again. I would, for you.”

“Gina, I know I wasn’t always honest with you. I know that I was an idiot to think that I could somehow use our relationship to get back at what Nini did to me, but you need to know that it was all real. It was real to me. Even the parts that were fake.” He explains, “I love you, Gina Porter.”

“What?” She’s taken by surprise, her head snapping up at those three words. 

“I love you.” He says, and he means it. “I’m tired of being too afraid to say it. And I’m tired of saying it to the wrong people, but you’re not wrong. You’re right, you are  _ so _ right, and I need you. I knew it then, and I ignored it, but I won’t ignore it now. I can’t.”

“I love you too, Ricky.” She smiles. “I love you, and I’ve never said it before, so you  _ know _ . This is it for me.”

Before she knows it, Ricky snakes his arms around her waist and pulls her close to him, kissing her like she’s never been kissed before. This time, it’s real. This time, it’s for them, and not for anyone else. 

“I can’t believe it took me this long. I always knew, even when I didn’t. I’m yours, Porter.” Ricky tells her as they pull away from the kiss, their foreheads resting against one another’s. 

And that was it. That was all that they needed, some type of confirmation, a love confession. Gina didn’t think that she could tell him without the promise that Ricky would feel the same way. But she was there, in Ricky’s arms, after she put her heart on the line for him, and it was exactly where they were supposed to be. After everything, after high school, and heartbreak, and pain, they loved each other. 

They loved each other, and it wasn’t like they were told love was supposed to be. It was messy, and broken, and far from perfect, but it was theirs. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it! It's over. I'm sorry this took so long. School has been so busy, and I had MAJOR writers block, but I did it! I'm really proud of this, and I'm so lucky that people actually read this and liked it, and left sweet comments. I can't thank you all enough for reading!!

**Author's Note:**

> So basically this is a college au Rina fic. So in this, Ricky and Nini broke up in high school just the same, but she didn't date Ej over the summer. I'll explain more once I post chapter two. I've never written on ao3 but I hope you all enjoy!


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